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US: New Yorkers keep cool with fire hydrants

Name: US: New Yorkers keep cool with fire hydrants
Uploaded: 29 Jul 2020, 10:52:33 PM
Duration: 01:32
Channel: TIMESOFINDIA.COM

4 views | Jul 29, 2020, 10:52:33 PM | AP

The city has opened 300 fire hydrants around New York City to help people keep cool as temperatures reach the 90s. It's part of the city's Cool Streets initiative launched last summer. The hydrants are opened in "heat stressed" or "heat burdened" communities, meaning residents there don't have access to air conditioners or they lack the finances to pay for the extra electricity costs of around the clock air conditioning. As opposed to years past when residents would open up hydrants that spew 1,000 gallons of water per minute, workers now install spray caps on hydrants at strategic locations that limit the flow to 25 gallons per minute, officials said. Many of the public swimming pools in New York City remained closed due to the pandemic, so the fire hydrants are a temporary replacement for many people. On average New York City residents use a billion gallons of water a day, but that can go up significantly in the summer as people use water to keep cool.